Calafiori talks continue as Barcelona court Nico Williams

Morning all.

There’s not much going on. The Guardian report that Arsenal ‘remain’ in talks with Bologna over Riccardo Calafiori, but the stumbling point appears to be the fee. Which, as I mentioned yesterday, is a fairly important part of getting any deal done.

The issue seems to be how much we pay up front, a situation which is somewhat complicated by the fact Bologna signed a sell-on clause with Basel, his former club, which sees them get 50% of any deal. Now the Italian club want to renegotiate that, or get more cash in a lump sum, or something else. Who knows? Certainly not all the transfer experts who were telling us this was a done deal two weeks ago.

According to transfermarkt, the Italian side paid just €4m for the defender last summer, so even if they get the full €45m they’re looking for in installments, it sees them make a very tidy profit. There are reports in the Italian press that Bologna have been in contact with the agent of Juventus centre-half Daniele Rugani, so it might be a case that they want to get a replacement sorted before sanctioning the departure. Either way, it doesn’t look as if anything will be sorted before the players head off to the US over the weekend.

Elsewhere, fans of Nico Williams will be sad to hear reports of his discussions with Barcelona and the desire of the Catalan club to sign him this summer. It makes a lot of sense for them, and you can see how it would be a desirable move for the player too. It’s not that I don’t think Arsenal wouldn’t have a chance of doing the deal, but I think if it came down to Williams choosing one over the other (I realise that’s a very simplistic view, but still), he’d stay in Spain.

Then again, who knows what kind of a compelling presentation Mikel Arteta might be able to make, and there are obviously financial aspects at play due to the precarious economic situation at Barcelona. Do they have any more levers to activate? Will they sell more naming rights for the newly renovated stadium (The Spotify Estrella Banco Santander Chupa Chup El Corte Ingles Caprabo Camp Nou sure does have a nice ring to it!)? I guess time will tell.

In the meantime, with big question marks over players like Reiss Nelson, Emile Smith Rowe and Eddie Nketiah, what are Arsenal’s plans to add something to the forward line if Nico Williams decides to go to Barcelona (only to be renamed Nico Freixenet SEAT Mercadona Fortuna Ducados Williams?) We’ve already tried to bring in Benjamin Sesko only for him to decide to stay with Disgustingly Sweet Energy Drink Leipzig, so is the most compelling quality at this point a player’s potential availability?

There are all kinds of reasons why deals don’t go through, but if we pursue a couple that don’t come off – which is fine – we have to decisive about what comes next. I do wonder if, medical background checks permitting, if we might hear the name of Pedro Neto floated again as a potential arrival. Quick, can play on both sides, lots of Premier League experience – which we know is something Mikel Arteta likes. The issue, of course, is fizzy cola-bottle hamstrings. Not ideal, but perhaps manageable.

I saw chat about Barcelona’s Raphinha being available because of the Williams interest, and if the criteria is a player who can offer more than Reiss Nelson, it makes sense, but I wouldn’t be splashing out too much on someone who will be 28 in December. Low ball the ever-loving shit out of Barca if that’s the way we’re going to go – they are desperate.

Right, I’m gonna leave it there and play golf on a warm day here in Dublin. Have a good Friday folks, and there’s a brand new Arsecast with Clive below.

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